I hope this Friday find’s you well! Today I am going to reflect on what it means to me to have achieved Momma Status, and how this journey to motherhood (that actually began 14 years ago) impacts even the tiniest of my Little Momma Moments.
(If this were a movie, the
picture would now change to a less saturated version of its original state, and
all the actors would be transformed into late 90’s/early millennium fashion. We
would be picking up in the year 2000.)
Two
years later I would meet a boy who would one day become my husband and father
of my child. (Don’t worry; this too we can chat more about in another post.) We
met at our church’s youth group and quickly became somewhat enamored with each
other. (Okay, I may be blushing at this very moment.) We dated for over three
years before we hit a slight bump in the road. You see, we had always thrived
off of honesty, so I was very clear about having a desire to not only one day parent,
but to do so as a stay-at-home-mom. He had known this all along, but as he faced
college, and their desire for him to declare a major… a problem arose. You see
my husband was then, and is now a musician. He was in serious contemplation about
choosing music as his major. As we discussed the need to declare, we made a
painful decision. We broke up. You see it was my dream to be a stay-at-home-mom,
and it was his dream to pursue music. We both understood that these two
lifestyles would have difficulty becoming compatible. So we split. It was devastating.
I almost whished I’d hated him, to make it more manageable. But a break up
based on logic instead of emotion was very challenging to process because I
still loved him. But after several weeks of blasting Kelly Clarkson’s “Since
You Were Gone” and crying in my bedroom, I received a phone call that would end
my sorrow. Branden asked me to dinner! That evening, he brought a paper from
his school showing he had declared the sciences as his major. He explained that
as much as he wanted music to be a significant part of his life, he wanted to
be a daddy. Furthermore he wanted to be a daddy to children who had me as their
stay-at-home-mom! Though there were more than a couple buckets of tears, this
was the best way for things to play out. It was clear that it would not have
been healthy for our relationship if I had asked him to walk away from music,
nor would it have been healthy for him to ask me to walk away from my dream. He
made the decision on his own, saving our relationship from potentially a
lifetime of bitterness.
Another three years would pass, and we would become husband and wife. As a couple we decided when we would like to expand our family and we laid out a plan; a plan that would have as many ups and downs as the world’s longest roller coaster. (Again, don’t worry; we will certainly chat about that in another post.) But when we saw that beautiful little pink plus sign, our world forever changed! WE WERE PREGNANT!
(If this were a movie, the picture would now change to a fully saturated version like its original state, and all the actors would be transformed into modern day fashion. We would be picking back up in the year 2014)
This brings me to the highlight of this post and the name sake of this blog! I had made it! I now had Momma Status! I was gifted the incredible opportunity to have the little momma moments I had dreamed of! After 14 years of dreaming about them, my dreams were coming true! God had brought Little B into this world through my own body, a fact that still leaves me in awe! I am called momma, and my heart overflows with delight!
Some of these little momma moments I anticipated to take my breath away, like kissing her for the very first time! While others were much more surprising, like my sense of joy I feel at the presence of the typically despised stretch marks. Yeah, I definitely NEVER expected that one! But it is true. I think they serve as a permanent reminder of the incredible privilege I was given to participate in God’s beautiful creation of life.
I love these moments, and I love intentionally looking for them in my day to day life. It has become a bit like the recent social media trend of “100 happy days,” where social media users intentionally identified one thing in each day that brought them happiness. So please indulge me as I share just a few of the little momma moments I’ve treasured in this life as Little B’s, Little Momma.
·
The first time she wrapped her tiny little hand
around my finger. – And to make the moment even more incredible she grabbed her
daddy’s finger with her other hand!
·
Baby’s first bath, followed by baby’s first massage!-
Bonding and relaxation.
·
Staring at the dimples on her cheeks and hands,
and tiny little toes!
·
Calling the pediatrician to make the first appointment
for my daughter. - Talk about taking your breath away. I seriously
now have a daughter, a DAUGHTER!
·
My baby girl falling asleep on my chest in the
froggie position. – There is nothing sweeter.
·
That face she makes as she is waking up. - It makes me smile every time!
· The moment she nurses without a tear. - Breastfeeding
is certainly a learning process, but when she and I both got the routine down,
that was a magical moment indeed.
·
The first photo shoot as a family of 3! - As a
photographer it was an epic moment to be having newborn pictures taken of MY little warrior.
·
Her first audible giggle! - Daddy has a way of
making this girl laugh! Silly Daddy!
·
First time in the spa. - A California baby must!
(Don’t worry the water temp was baby appropriate J)
·
First time at the park.- One of many trips this
little lady will have.
·
An invitation to, and the attendance of a local Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS) group. – I mean WOW, just WOW. The exclusivity of membership
to these groups was now attainable, because I had Momma Status!
·
Then there is Baby wearing. - This one surprisingly
brought me to tears. The gravity of the intimate bonding between mommy and
daughter while taking a walk with my little girl in the baby carrier simply
overtook me!
·
Watching the two most important people in my
life bond! - Is there anything more endearing than your husband holding his
baby girl! *Swoon* And then him serenading her as she falls asleep. *I die*
Love,
Little Momma, April Faith